Injection molding is a process for producing manufactured products from a resin material, such as a thermoplastic or thermosetting plastic material. After the product is designed, a mold is created, usually from a metal such as steel or aluminum. The mold is precision-machined to form the features of the product. To create the product, the resin material is heated and forced by injection into the mold cavity, where it cools and conforms to the configuration of the mold cavity.
Typically, an injection-molding machine includes a hopper in which the resin material is stored in a granular form. The resin material is heated and fed into the mold via one or more feed lines. The heated resin material is forced into the mold cavity by a ram, plunger, reciprocating screw, or other type of injector.
In-mold labeling is a process by which a product's label is secured to the product during the molding process, so that the label becomes an integral part of the product. During the in-mold labeling process, tooling transfers the label to the mold and aligns it in the mold cavity prior to the introduction of the resin material.